Latin America

​Gun Attack on Radio in Dominican Republic Leaves Two Dead

16 February 2017

Two radio journalists have been killed in the Dominican Republic after gunmen opened fire during a news bulletin which was being broadcast on Facebook Live.

Luís Manuel Medina, the presenter of the news programme Milenio Caliente – or Hot Millennium – was killed while on air on Tuesday morning. Producer and director Leo Martínez was shot dead in an adjacent office at the radio station FM 103.5.

Gunfire could be heard during the Facebook Live video, along with a woman yelling “Shots! Shots! Shots!” before the transmission abruptly cuts off.

The station secretary Dayaba Garcia was also injured in the attack and taken to hospital where she needed emergency surgery.

Police said the shooting occurred in San Pedro de Macorís, a small city 45 miles east of the capital, Santo Domingo. The radio station is located within a shopping mall.

Three men have been arrested, but none has been charged. Police say they do not yet have a motive.